


M & L

by hopclair



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arguing, Billy Hargrove Being an Asshole, Breakups, F/M, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Light Angst, insecure Max
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:55:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23587987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hopclair/pseuds/hopclair
Summary: Max realizes she messed up this time.
Relationships: Maxine "Max" Mayfield/Lucas Sinclair
Comments: 2
Kudos: 48





	M & L

**Author's Note:**

> It's my first Lumax fic :') I've recently dived into a loophole and i love them so much already. I'm sorry my writing isn't the best but... enjoy still!

Max knows that she shouldn’t project her emotions on others. She knows that more than anything. It was something that she struggled with and something that she’d talk about with El constantly. But she’d be lying if she said that the fight with Billy didn’t make her angry. She’d be lying if his words didn’t leave wounds in her self esteem and made her eyes water. She hated when he spoke about his mom and spewed that it was Max's fault they're in Hawkins. She hated it more than anything.

“ _ Say it. _ ” He said and she felt like she was thirteen again. She felt small and squeamish. Her mom wasn’t around to defend her and even though she was seventeen, she was no match for Billy. She didn’t understand. He talked so much shit about Hawkins and how he was crazy to leave this shithole, yet when the time came -- He was still making the redhead’s life an utter hell. 

_ “Fuck off.”  _ She says, pushing him away and she’s out the door. Max catches how he laughs at her fear and she can’t help the tears that bubble her eyes. She left without her skateboard, without her phone and if she was honest, she didn’t have the courage to go back inside. So, she simply walked to the Wheeler’s home. She swallowed every single tear and she pretended to be unbothered. 

And it worked at first. She arrived at the Wheeler residence and she didn’t even have to knock. El had been waiting for her, which made her smile. She let herself get dragged down to the basement and noticed how she was the missing piece of the party. Lucas had been arguing with Dustin about whatever and for a second, she thought she could ignore the vile feelings in her chest. This was her safe haven after all. Five losers that had a huge love for old films and soda with too much sugar. 

They had decided to watch a movie and Max was comfortable on the sofa. She was stumped between Will and Lucas and everything was going great. 

Until Lucas disagreed with her. 

The movie selection for the day had been Hush. Dustin proclaimed it as one of the best films he had seen and Max couldn’t help but disagree with him. The movie was alright, but it wasn’t the best. The concept seemed a little cliche for her. They were suddenly discussing the movie in detail and Lucas had disagreed with her. That’s what brought this whole situation to the light. 

“Well, if we can’t even agree on a movie -- we should just break up.” Max says, in the heat of the moment and she feels the anger that blossomed earlier in her chest. She was ripping the frustration that she felt with Billy towards her boyfriend and Lucas wasn’t having it. She could see it in the way his eyebrows furrowed and how the rest of the party were bystanders to this dumb argument.

“Max…” El whispered, hoping to catch her best friend’s eye. Lucas and Max had this habit of breaking up and getting back together within hours. It was childish and playful at first. Of course, they were fourteen. Lucas would apologize and they’d be okay. But now they’re teenagers and this time it actually stings. She hasn’t pulled that trick in an old while. 

“Why is it that every single time we get into an argument, big or small, your only suggestion is to break up?” He questions and he’s full of hurt. It’s too late to apologize. “Do I mean so little to you, Max?” She’s tongue-tied. “Because if so, maybe we should break up.” 

“Fine. Let’s break up.” Max says, confirming his point and he scoffs. His eyes are starting to water and he’s grabbing his jacket. She feels her heart strings tug and she hates herself for being so volatile sometimes. She felt like a monster in these moments. 

“I’ll see you guys later.” Lucas says, mostly to the party and he doesn’t look back at her. He simply walks up the stairs, closes the door shut and he’s out of her line of view. 

Max stands there, utterly paralyzed and nobody mutters a single word. They’re all in equal shock. This wasn’t how their afternoon was supposed to go. They were supposed to watch movies and fall asleep watching these shitty netflix movies. Maybe sneak one of Ted’s bears and split it between the six of them. Those typical teenage stuff. 

Usually, she’s the one that barges out. 

Usually, she’s the one that storms out. 

“I’m leaving too.” Max says, almost in a daze. She doesn’t wait for any reactions and simply climbs the stairs, leaving as well. The redhead doesn’t catch that she’s crying until she’s already halfway home. She can’t stop her tears and she feels like she hurt him like her parents hurt each other. That only makes her cry harder. 

Lucas and Max’s fights don’t last long. At least they didn’t when they were younger. Usually, he called her within the first two days and they were good. But this time, it lasted a week. She hadn’t heard anything from him and the only person she had seen, had been El. Who would sneak in through her window with comics and ice cream. She always tries to cheer her up but it never works. 

Max is curled in her sheets and El is playing with her hair gently. Her eyes are red and she can’t stop herself from crying. There’s music in the background and she’s only hoping that her stepmom doesn’t walk into her mess of tears. 

“Did I do something wrong? Why hasn’t he called me?”

El chews on her lower lip, almost scared that the other might explode on her. “Max… I say this with all the love in the world. But maybe this time… you did something wrong. You’re always breaking up with him for no reason and… he got tired of it.”

"Yeah, but that's how we roll." Max tries to reason, sitting up to look at the other and El reaches to wipe her tears. She gives her a small smile and Max feels the tenderness on her fingertips. 

“That’s how you rolled when you were kids, Max…” -- “You’re not fourteen anymore… Have you considered how Lucas feels about the whole thing? You exploded for no reason and that alone, would’ve made me angry too.” She says and Max is thankful that she’s always honest with her. 

They spend a little bit more time together until El is saying goodnight and she’s left with nothing but her thoughts. It’s midnight now and she’s still curled in her bed. But this time, she’s staring at the multiple pictures by her bedside. When she came to Hawkins, she never thought that she’d find like the ones she did. She had multiple pictures of the party, but her favorite one was the one of them. The picture was taken in the eighth grade and they’re back to back. They have the cheesiest smile on their faces and the picture is a little crooked -- But it’s her favorite picture to date. 

Lucas was one of the best things to happen to her. 

And she knew that breaking up with him was merely a defense mechanism. 

_ Leave  _ **_them_ ** _ before they can hurt  _ **_you._ **

“God, I fucked up.” She tells herself and if it wasn’t so late, she’d be running to his house. But she decides to sleep on it and prepare her apology for tomorrow. She lets out a small sigh, throwing her bright sheets over her head and she eventually falls asleep. 

When the new day brings itself upon the seventeen year old, she’s already knocking on Lucas’ front door. It’s eleven in the morning and she knows that he’s awake. He can’t sleep past nine in the morning. She’s chewing on her lower lip and she’s praying that her apology works. 

His mom is the one to open the front door and she’s not surprised in the slightest when it’s Max on her door. She’s wearing a warm smile and Max can’t help but smile back. If there was anybody she loved more than Lucas, it was his family. But she had a particular soft spot for his mom. She would invite her over to bake cookies and sometimes to go shopping with her. She was kindness in body and Max couldn’t pick a better mother-in-law. (They’re not married, but what else could she call her?)

“Hi, Maxine.” She greets and she’s the only person she loves hearing her name from. “Lucas is in his room. Do you want me to tell him you’re here?”

Max shakes her head instantly at the offer. “No, no. Um.. I have to talk to him. I kinda messed up. Is that okay?”

Lucas’ mom knew that teenagers were teenagers, so she nodded. “Go on ahead, but remember. The door has to be open.” 

"Thank you so much." She says and she’s letting go of the breath she didn’t even know she was holding. She takes a step inside and soon, she’s making her way to his bedroom. She can hear his mom telling his dad who was at the door and the gentleness of it all -- has her heart racing. 

She’s always loved Lucas’ home. She remembers how nervous she was when she first met his parents. She asked Joyce for help and she even put a bow in her hair. (Something that Lucas would always tease her about, but it was secret between them.)

Max is finally standing in front of his door and with a shaky breath, she knocks on the door lightly.

“Mom, I already ate. Can I please keep sleeping?” He says and her heart races at the sound of his voice. She’s missed him so much. 

“It’s not your mom.” She says, loud enough for him to hear. The girl hears shuffling and soon, the door is being unlocked. With a pull of the door, she’s facing Lucas and she’s instantly trying her best not to tear up. 

"Max? What are you doing here?" He questions and he’s obviously surprised at her appearance. She was stubborn. Especially when it came to fights. And she wasn’t one to admit she was wrong. 

“We… we need to talk.” 

She watches how his eyes change and it’s obvious he remembers the argument. He’s shaking his head. “I think you were pretty clear about the breakup, Max.” 

"Please… Hear me out?" She begs and there’s a desperation in his tone that he’s never heard before. So, he lets her pass. And like always, the door is slightly open. 

Lucas sits on his bed and she’s following suit. There’s a wide space between them and they’re both looking around his room. Like her room, there’s pictures everywhere. There’s pictures of the party, of them, of his family and she’s soon looking down at her fingers. She can’t stop fiddling with them. “I miss you a lot, Lucas.”

He’s quiet. 

“I was thinking and wondering. Maybe those are the same thing. I don’t fucking know.” She starts, always tender with her words. “Why hasn’t Lucas called me? Doesn’t he care? And I was angry at first. But then I realize that you have a point. I always say that we should break up when we have a minimal argument or disagree in the slightest. And I know that sometimes I joke about ‘hey, no boyfriend, no problem’ -- But you’ve never been a problem to me. It’s the exact opposite. You’re one of the best things to happen to me. But I just think -- If I'm not good enough to earn my brother's respect… If I leave you, you won’t hurt me. And I won’t have to deal with that again. I don't want to be like my mom.” She’s spilling her deepest insecurities and she doesn’t even realize that she’s crying. “I had argued with Billy that day and he made me feel so awful… and I took it out on you.” She doesn’t realize that she’s a mess of tears until the oldest of the two, raises his hand to wipe her tears. Snapping her back into reality. 

"Max. Hey. I got you.” He says and he’s wrapping his arms around her. She’s crying into his shoulder and she can’t help the feeling of dread that creeps onto her bones. “You need to talk about these things with me… We’re in a relationship. And a relationship means being each other’s best friend. Not dating them because their mom makes you good food.” 

That makes her crack a laugh and she’s pulling back from him. She’s cleaning her face up and he’s helping her in the process. Her nose is red and he can’t help the fond look he has on her face.

“You look like a mess.” He teases and Max once again laughs. 

“Yeah, I do.” 

“I miss you too, Max.” Lucas says and that only makes her cry more. 

“Did- Did I say something wrong?” 

“No.” Max shakes her head, wrapping her arms around him and she’s holding him close. She missed him so much. 

“Talk to me more, Max… Please?” He asks and she nods. 

“I’ll try.” 

“I love you.” He says, into her ear and plants a kiss on her cheek. It’s gentle and she’s lucky. 

“I love you too.” 


End file.
